The market for wireless location monitoring systems is large and growing, but current applications of the technology can nevertheless be inconvenient to use. Existing wireless location monitoring systems generally use short range wireless technologies. Further, they operate by detecting nearby radio tags embedded in seating, tables, racks, or other furniture in the retail environment. These wireless locator devices relay the identifying information for the detected tag or tags to a correlating central processor to provide customer location information.
This known approach involving the use of radio tags leads to several shortcomings. For example, the wireless locator device must be intentionally placed by a customer within a very short distance, approximately one inch, from the radio tag. If the customer is not aware of this requirement, the location tracking solution does not function properly and locating the customer becomes very difficult. Also, it is increasingly common to find retail locations equipped with movable seating, tables, product racks, and other movable furniture. As this furniture is moved around in the venue, it becomes increasingly difficult to determine the customer's location based on the detection of the furniture's embedded radio tag.